Basheva, aiming for 175: a live LSAT coaching session
This is what LSAT Unplugged coaching looks like. Basheva came in at low 150s, aiming for 175 on the April 10 LSAT. Steve Schwartz coached her live for about 19 minutes on Logical Reasoning, timing, review process, and the whole session and transcript are below.
The numbers here are where Basheva started and the goal we set together in this session. Individual results vary.
- Student: Basheva
- Score when recorded: low 150s
- Goal: 175
- Target test: April 10
- Situation: Works full time and studies LSAT late at night or early morning, running about a week behind her study plan, ahead of an April 10 test.
- Focus: Logical Reasoning, timing, review process
- Worked on: Necessary Assumption, Must Be True, Inference, Flaw
What we fixed in this session
Overthinking can destroy your timing on the LSAT. It's not enough to get the question right, you've got to get it right under test day conditions.
Steve Schwartz
This is one session, in the middle of the work. I've been coaching the LSAT since 2005, and every session runs the same way: find the real problem, fix the process, reset the plan.
I told her to stop sitting on a question for 10 minutes and trust her gut on the first 10 questions instead of second guessing herself.
I had her retake a practice test under her newly approved triple time accommodation conditions to get an accurate baseline score.
The plan: I directed her to focus study time on necessary assumption, inference, and flaw, the highest yield question types, and cut lower yield areas like parallel reasoning.
Where the session landed: She commits to starting a wrong answer journal and the Socratic review method, something she had previously been told not to do.
If your prep looks like Basheva's did, that's fixable in one session.
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In Basheva's words
Something clicked, and I finally started getting them right.
Basheva
I did them each in less than three minutes, which to me is a huge breakthrough.
Basheva
I will start doing this, even though Jet told me not to.
Basheva
Questions people ask about LSAT Unplugged coaching
What happens in an LSAT Unplugged coaching session?
The coach finds the specific habit that's costing points, fixes the process, and sets the plan for the weeks ahead. In Basheva's case: her to stop sitting on a question for 10 minutes and trust her gut on the first 10 questions instead of second....
Who runs the sessions?
Steve Schwartz recorded this one. Every LSAT Unplugged coach scored 170 or higher on an official LSAT, and students are matched to a coach on learning style and weak areas.
Where can I see finished results?
On the student reviews page at unpluggedprep.com/reviews, with video interviews and official scores.
Learn the fixes yourself: necessary assumption questions, flaw questions, must be true questions.
Student reviews and finished results.
Full session transcript
Recorded August 2025.
Steve: We want to get you those next 20 points. It's going to come from getting super detailed in your review process. This is Basheva, and she's looking to go from the low 150s to a 175 in the next month. My name is Steve Schwartz, and I actually scored a 175 on my own official LSAT. Today, Basheva is going to bring me her biggest LSAT challenge, and I'm going to help her address it as we look to improve her score by 20 points or more. And where are you currently scoring?
Basheva: My best was on a 35 minute test, and my first test was 138, which is not good. I didn't know yet I could change the time, so I did 35 minutes. I haven't taken another diagnostic. What I'm doing is just from the sections, sometimes I'm getting 10 wrong, sometimes 6 wrong. With Jet, I found a significant difference just from the past week or so. What I'm finding, nothing to do with Jet, is my schedule is great and I love the plan they're giving me, it's me that's not having the correct amount of time to do it. For now I'm a week behind even though I'm doing the work, but today is LSAT day.
This week we talked about whether I should just continue with the program they're giving me. They already changed it around a bit in the middle and that was better, but I'm not even up to there yet. So I did one day and went back to what I was doing, because my weakest part is the first part they gave me, and I don't want to miss that review.
Steve: I want to call out a couple things. You started off at a 138, you're looking to get a 175 one month from now, and you've improved since that 138. I'm glad you're finding the coaching and the study plan helpful.
Basheva: This morning I'm on such a high, because with assumption needs I literally did 10 and got only two right last night, which was crazy. Besides that, I work full time and I'm trying to do my LSAT prep at 2:00 in the morning, which is not the right thing. Last night, the first night home after 6 nights, I said, "You're going to get assumption needs into your head and you're not budging until you do." Something clicked and I finally started getting them right.
I woke up this morning, did another two, and got them right. I went back to my assumption list and said, "You're going to do five before the call and get them right." I did two, I'm in the middle of the third, but I got them right. Back to what I told you yesterday: I can't be on a question for 10 minutes, that's got to stop. I did these each in less than three minutes, which is a huge breakthrough, because my issue is I spend too much time on a question when I know the answer just by reading it, and I sit on it instead of trusting that. That's where I mess up.
On another test I did the first 10 questions to see my score. I got 3 wrong, though I'd say really 2, since one was a wrong button pressed by mistake going fast. In reality I was getting 5 wrong until now, and only got 10 wrong this morning. I've got to stop spending 10 minutes on a question, that's the whole point. I even sent in for accommodations and asked for triple time, because I thought I needed that long on each test, and I see now that's not working. My main thing is speed, because I have to get to the April 10th LSAT, and once I start sitting on a question my whole mind goes everywhere but where the question is, that's where I mess up terribly. So even though I'll make mistakes, at least they're true mistakes and not from overthinking myself into a mess.
Steve: Let's make the most of this time and talk about how to help you get faster and avoid getting bogged down and stuck. You mentioned getting maybe 10 to 12 wrong per section. That's better than the 138 you started at, but there's still a ways to go to get you to that 175.
Basheva: What mark would that give me, just about?
Steve: Honestly, I don't know off the top of my head, raw score conversions differ by exam, but it's a bit far off, probably in the 150s to ballpark it. So we're still looking at something like a 20 to 25 point increase. Overthinking can destroy your timing on the LSAT. It's not enough to get the question right, you've got to get it right under test day conditions. Use the order of difficulty in logical reasoning to your advantage: the questions get harder as the section goes on, so the earlier questions are easier on average.
If you're aiming for 165 or above, I typically recommend solving the first 10 questions in roughly 10 to 12 minutes, building a time bank to apply to the tougher questions later. Don't second-guess yourself on those first 10, trust your gut. If it seems easy, it probably is, the correct answer isn't wrong just because it's obvious. That could be true on question 23, but probably not on question 5. You mentioned triple time accommodations. Have those been approved for you?
Basheva: Yes, I got approved for everything I asked for: triple time, removing the section, and being able to sit or stand and speak, since I can't be in my chair all day.
Steve: Good to know. So we want you taking a new practice test under the new timed conditions, triple time, no extra section, stop, start, breaks, to get a better baseline of where you're at, which could also address some of the speed issues. Pending that, let's focus on accuracy for now. Don't skip over the earlier portions of the study plan, establishing that strong foundation is key. You want the proper perspective on each section and question type.
You mentioned necessary assumption, one of the most common question types in logical reasoning, so it's high yield relative to, say, parallel, of which there are only a couple. Extra time can help, but it won't replace a strong strategy or understanding of the content, and it's not a license to overthink. Your pacing might improve, but you still need an in-depth review process: analysis of your mistakes, what you're getting wrong and why. You've got roughly 4 weeks left, so we need to make some difficult decisions, like cutting areas such as parallel to spend more time on necessary assumption. Since today is your LSAT day...
Basheva: Today's my LSAT day. Other than 2 hours, I've been spending all of it. I stopped this morning to start a new test and see where I'm holding. Then I have to do five necessary assumptions, since I feel like I nailed them and got them done fast and right. So do I go ahead with my plan, or keep doing what I'm doing? Otherwise I spent the last two hours on a different area, and I'm in the middle of must be true questions. Which one do I go to?
Steve: That's a great question. The answer is yes to all of it.
Basheva: I know, the answer is I wish I had three monitors on.
Steve: Sounds like you need more time.
Basheva: This week alone, I gave the whole Sunday to LSAT, Monday 2 to 3 hours, Tuesday a little, maybe an hour or two, yesterday only at night. So I'm giving myself a few hours a day, but I wish I had a lot more.
Steve: It's totally normal to fall behind, because things come up in life outside the LSAT, work, school, family. What matters is you keep forging ahead by prioritizing the most important areas of your plan. Focus on the high yield areas, the question types that give you trouble and show up most frequently. The three biggest types in logical reasoning are necessary assumption, inference, and flaw. Focus on those.
Don't play catch-up by doubling or tripling days of work into one day, quality matters more than quantity every time. For April, since it's triage, cut whatever isn't the highest priority and spend that time on necessary assumption or more practice. We're always happy to make unlimited revisions to your plan so there's no disconnect between the plan and what you need in the moment. If you're falling behind because things get busy, we adjust for that too.
I want you to be able to rely on the plan we lay out, but as things change we adjust it. And if we decide those additional 2 months would really benefit you, to get you to 175, so you're not feeling gaps on something like necessary assumption 3 weeks out and you're doing more timed work, we can give you that space with a June plan.
Basheva: Got it.
Steve: Be open to adapting your review methods as you progress, you're never locked into one plan or methodology. Your confidence comes from proper preparation, and what you need at one stage may not be what you need later. Earlier in the process, with a lower score, you may need to build baseline familiarity and a strong foundation. Once you're past that, it's time for execution and application: real LSAT questions, then reviewing your mistakes in depth. As your scores rise, that indicates where to take your studying next. Have you adopted any review document or tracker, like what we typically do with the Socratic review method?
Basheva: No, I haven't worked on that yet. This morning I went back to my necessary assumptions list and documented what happened and the time it took, but I haven't reviewed anything with the Socratic review method with Jet.
Steve: That's something I want to invite you to explore. You have limited time both in hours and weeks before your exam, so this might be something to toy with now, and if you go for June you'll have more time to experiment. Let me share something so you can see what others in the program are doing.
This is a document from another student, an LSAT practice wrong answer journal. They lay out the practice test number, section number, question number, question stem type (flaw, must be true, and so on), the method of reasoning, what they chose, the right answer, whether they flagged it, why their choice was wrong, what made the wrong answer tempting, why the right answer is right, and what made it unappealing on first read, plus other notes. The idea is getting deliberate and concrete about everything you're getting wrong and why, so you avoid repeating it. I'd invite you to do this for the toughest ones you're having difficulty with, like necessary assumption. I think you could see big gains from that.
Basheva: Okay. I actually saw this, I think the first instructor recommended it, and I asked Jet if I should be doing it, and he told me no, I don't need to.
Steve: Did he say why?
Basheva: No, he said it's not necessary, that's why I didn't do it. Otherwise I was ready to go ahead.
Steve: Interesting, it might have been based on where you were at in the process. But with your test in a month, and a specific sense of your weak areas, it might be worth exploring. You have to balance it with foundational work and timed exams, but for reviewing mistakes on timed exams it could really help. Maintaining momentum under timed conditions is key.
Every question is worth the same, so never get bogged down on one. The LSAT has a built-in flagging function for this: if you're spending too long, flag it, skip it, come back at the end of the section. Use this sparingly, maybe 3 or 4 questions per section. That second look can help you break out of tunnel vision and turn a guess into a confident answer, or at least help you eliminate a couple of choices.
The key things to track: which practice question it was, practice test number, section number, question number, and question stem type, what you chose, the right answer, why your choice was wrong, what made the wrong answer tempting, what made the right answer right, and what made it unappealing on first read. This matters because you have traps of encouragement toward the wrong answer and traps of discouragement away from the right one, and until you know which tricks you're personally prone to, you may keep making the same mistake.
Basheva: So just to understand, is it the writing it down that's the method, or something I review later with my coach, or both?
Steve: Both. Writing it down forces you to articulate your thought process, because otherwise it's too easy to see the right answer and think "how could I have been so dumb" and move on. Until you fully understand your mistakes and why, you may just repeat them. Later you review this regularly, noting the key insights or trends in what you're getting wrong.
Basheva: I will start doing this, even though Jet told me not to. I go for these things because I'm a coach myself, if my coach explains this is where we are and to go for it, that's enough for me. For me to coach you, I need you to do this to make it work. Do you get what I'm saying?
Steve: Yeah, of course. This lets us track the data and it encourages you to go deeper in your review, which matters a lot as you take more timed exams in the lead-up to the test in a month. If you were taking it 3 months out you'd have even more time to implement this, but this is going to be key for you. You also need that strong foundation, so get solid on question types like necessary assumption. Once your practice test scores are at least in the mid-150s, we want to get you those next 20 points.
It's going to come from getting super detailed in your review process. I'm excited to see where you take it from here. Tracking your mistakes and deepening your review is key to significant improvement, otherwise you risk repeating the same mistakes without realizing it. At a lower score, like a 138 starting point, you may need to work on all areas. As you progress into the 150s, there will be trends in what you're getting wrong that show where to spend your time. If you're not tracking mistakes, you're not collecting the data that points you in the right direction. Once you're in the 150s or beyond, looking to break into the high 170s, you've got to be diligent and obsessive about tracking mistakes and deepening your review, so you can figure out what you're getting wrong and why, and build an action plan to avoid repeating it.
More coaching sessions: Zabdi, 141 to 155, Abigail, 147 to 160, Leah, 153 to 170, Dominic, Alina, 157 to 170. Student results and reviews.
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